Nov. 10, 2005

USA Track & Field selected Fernando Cabada, a senior at Virginia Intermont College, to Team USA for the 2005 International Chiba Ekiden Relay to be held in Chiba, Japan November 23. In addition to Team USA, the marathon relay will feature teams from Ethiopia, Kenya, Morocco, France and Great Britain.

Cabada was selected to Team USA based upon his two top five US championship performances this fall, which include his 4th place US 5k finish and his 5th place US 10k finish last weekend.

"We feel that both the men's and women's teams will improve on last year's finishes," said Fred Finke, USATF Long Distance Running Division Chair. "We have several athletes who are just out of college and are eager to compete in such a prestigious international event." In the
2004 edition the U.S. men finished seventh.

The Chiba Ekiden Relay marks the third national team that Cabada has been selected for in 2005, equaled by only one other American runner.

Cabada joins an impressive seven man team that will compete on relay legs over the marathon distance composed of three 5ks, two 10ks and 7.2k finish leg. USA Team members are:

Ian Dobson, 23, Palo Alto, Calif. Dobson qualified for the Team USA World Championships roster with his runner-up finish in the 5,000m at the 2005 USA Outdoor Championships in Carson, Calif., where he established a new personal time of 13:15.33. He went on to finish 10th in opening round at the World Outdoor Championships (13:27.16). Former Stanford teammate Ryan Hall also joins him on the Chiba squad.

Ryan Hall, 23, Palo Alto, Calif. Hall capped off his collegiate career with an NCAA Championship and school record at 5,000 meters, just out-kicking his Stanford team-mate Ian Dobson, 13:22.32 to 13:22.54.
Just two weeks later, the pair would again find themselves running personal bests as they finished second and third (Dobson 13:15.33, Hall
13:16.03) at the USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, also earning their places on the U.S. team for Helsinki, where Hall finished 16th in opening round (13:59.86).

Brian Sell, 27, Rochester Hills, Mich. This past May Sell won his first USA title at the USA 25 km Championships in Grand Rapids, Mich., (1:15:27), the seventh fastest 25 km time ever for a U.S. man. He also has numerous top-ten finishes in USA Championships and international races, including a ninth-place finish at this summer's IAAF World Championships Marathon.

Josh Moen, 23, Rochester Hills, Mich. A team-mate of Brian Sell at the Hansons-Brooks Distance Project and graduate of Wartburg College, Moen is a five-time NCAA Division II national champion and ten-time All-American. Moen recently finished fourth at the USA Men's 10 km Championships, running a personal best of 29:13.

Matt Gonzales, 24, Santa Fe, N.M. A two-time cross country All-American and an All-American in the 10,000 meters on the track, Gonzales placed sixth in the 5,000m finals at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials running 13:41.25. He recently placed second at the USA Men's 10 km Championships ahead of Moen and Sell, running 28:39.

Fernando Cabada, 23, Bristol, Va. The 2005 NAIA 5,000 and 10,000 meter champion, Cabada has earned numerous All-American honors at Virginia Intermont College. He was a member of the championship U.S. team that won the inaugural NACAC Cross Country Championships in March. Cabada was fifth at the recent USA Men's 10 km Championships in 29:16.

Ryan Kirkpatrick, 27, Colorado Springs, Colo. The 2002 USA Men's 10 km Champion and graduate of West Point, Kirkpatrick was ninth in the 10,000 meters at the 2005 USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in 28:43.44. His recent sixth-place finish at the USA Men's 10 km Championships earned him a spot as the alternate for the Chiba squad.